Systems analysis approach to the design of efficient water pricing policies under the EU Water Framework Directive

Economic theory suggests that water pricing can contribute to efficient management of water scarcity. The European Union (EU) Water Framework Directive (WFD) is a major legislative effort to introduce the use of economic instruments to encourage efficient water use and achieve environmental management objectives. However, the design and implementation of economic instruments for water management, including water pricing, has emerged as a challenging aspect of WFD implementation. This study demonstrates the use of a systems analysis approach to designing and comparing two economic approaches to efficient management of groundwater and surface water given EU WFD ecological flow requirements. Under the first approach, all wholesale water users in a river basin face the same volumetric price for water. This water price does not vary in space or in time, and surface water and groundwater are priced at the same rate. Under the second approach, surface water is priced using a volumetric price, while groundwater use is controlled through adjustments to the price of energy, which is assumed to control the cost of groundwater pumping. For both pricing policies, optimization is used to identify optimal prices, with the objective of maximizing welfare while reducing human water use in order to meet constraints associated with EU WFD ecological and groundwater sustainability objectives. The systems analysis approach demonstrates the successful integration of economic, hydrologic, and environmental components into an integrated framework for the design and testing of water pricing policies. In comparison to the first pricing policy, the second pricing policy, in which the energy price is used as a surrogate for a groundwater price, shifts a portion of costs imposed by higher water prices from low-value crops to high-value crops and from small urban/domestic locations to larger locations. Because growers of low-value crops will suffer the most from water price increases, the use of energy costs to control groundwater use offers the advantage of reducing this burden.The authors would like to thank the Danish Research School of Water Resources (FIVA) for financial support. Three anonymous reviewers made helpful suggestions that were incorporated into the revised version.Riegels, N.; Pulido-Velazquez, M.; Doulgeris, C.; Sturm, V.; Jensen, R.; Moller, F.; Bauer-Gottwein, P. (2013). Systems analysis approach to the design of efficient water pricing policies under the EU Water Framework Directive. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management. 139(5):574-582. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943-5452.0000284S574582139

Cadmium pigments in consumer products and their health risks

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal that has been increasingly regulated over the past few decades. The main exposure routes for the general public are the consumption of certain foods and the inhalation of cigarette smoke. However, additional exposure may occur through the current and historical use of the metal in consumer products. In this paper, the uses of Cd in consumer goods are reviewed, with the focus on brightly-coloured Cd sulphide and sulphoselenide pigments, and measurements of Cd in historical and contemporary products ascertained by XRF are reported. Cadmium is encountered across a wide range of contemporary plastic products, mainly because of the unregulated recycling of electronic waste and polyvinyl chloride. However, concentrations are generally low (<100 μg g−1), conforming with current limits and posing minimal risk to consumers. Of greater concern is high concentrations of pigmented Cd (up to 2% by weight) in old products, and in particular children's toys that remain in circulation. Here, tests conducted suggest that Cd migration in some products exceeds the Toy Safety Directive limit of 17 μg g−1 by an order of magnitude. The principal current use of Cd pigments is in ceramic products where the metal is encapsulated and overglazed. Leaching tests on new and secondhand items of hollowware indicate compliance with respect to the current Cd limit of 300 μg L−1, but that non-compliance could occur for items of earthenware or damaged articles should a proposed limit of 5 μg L−1 be introduced. The greatest consumer risk identified is the use of Cd pigments in the enamels of decorated drinking glasses. Thus, while décor is restricted to the exterior, any enamel within the lip area is subject to ready attack from acidic beverages because the pigments are neither encapsulated nor overglazed. Glass bottles decorated with Cd-based enamel do not appear to represent a direct health hazard but have the propensity to contaminate recycled glass products. It is recommended that decorated glassware is better regulated and that old, brightly-coloured toys are treated cautiously

Entre seguridad humana y estatal: ¿ofrece la Unión Europea una respuesta coherente a los desafíos de seguridad en Centroamérica, Colombia y Venezuela?

Centroamérica, Colombia y Venezuela enfrentan importantes desafíos de seguridad. Pese al discurso de seguridad humana en su política hacia América Latina, la Unión Europea (UE) ha tenido aproximaciones diferentes a los tres conflictos: desde el nexo seguridad-desarrollo en Centroamérica y un compromiso de cooperación combinado con la “securitización” del conflicto en Colombia, hasta una política de sanciones y diplomacia en Venezuela. Metodología: mediante una perspectiva comparada y un marco analítico común de análisis de contenido cualitativo, el artículo plantea la pregunta: ¿qué concepto de seguridad, estatal o humana, está detrás de las políticas de la UE hacia estos países y con qué grado de coherencia se implementa? Conclusiones: se demuestra que la UE hace un manejo poco coherente del nexo seguridad-desarrollo hacia los países seleccionados debido a inconsistencias internas y externas, en este caso sobre todo de cara a EE. UU. como principal donante de la región y “socio” transatlántico. Originalidad: el artículo deconstruye la imagen de la UE como socio de desarrollo comprometido con la seguridad humana. Aunque la política de la UE sigue estando más enfocada en afrontar las causas como la desigualdad y la pobreza que las consecuencias de la inseguridad, la política del nexo seguridad-desarrollo refleja una cierta securitización del desarrollo a la hora de cooperar con países en conflicto y Estados frágiles considerados potenciales “amenazas” a la seguridad, como Colombia o Venezuela

The Acclimation of European Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) to Temperature: Behavioural and Neurochemical Responses

Studies on fish behavioural and neurophysiological responses to water temperature change may contribute to an improved understanding of the ecological consequences of global warming. We investigated behavioural and neurochemical responses to water temperature in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) acclimated to three temperatures (18, 22 and 28°C). After 21 d of acclimation, three groups of 25 fish each were exposed to four behavioural challenges (foraging, olfactory, aversive and mirror tests). The expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) was then analysed by Western blotting in CNS homogenates (from a subset of the same fish) as a marker for cholinergic system activity. In both foraging and olfactory tests, fish acclimated to 28°C exhibited significantly higher arousal responses than fish acclimated to lower temperatures. All specimens showed fright behaviour in the aversive test, but the latency of the escape response was significantly less in the fish at 28°C. Finally, the highest mirror responsiveness was exhibited by the fish acclimated to 22°C. As in the case of cholinergic neurotransmission, significantly higher ChAT levels were detected in the telencephalon, diencephalon, cerebellum and spinal cord of fish acclimated to 22 or 28°C in comparison with those maintained at 18°C. Lower ChAT levels were detected in the mesencephalon (optic tectum) at 22 and 28°C than at 18°C. These data indicate that neuronal functions are affected by water temperature. Increases or decreases in ChAT expression can be related to the functional modulation of brain and spinal cord centres involved in behavioural responses to temperature change. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the environmental temperature level influences behaviour and CNS neurochemistry in the European sea bass.Studies on fish behavioural and neurophysiological responses to water temperature change may contribute to an improved understanding of the ecological consequences of global warming. We investigated behavioural and neurochemical responses to water temperature in European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) acclimated to three temperatures (18, 22 and 28 degrees C). After 21d of acclimation, three groups of 25 fish each were exposed to four behavioural challenges (foraging, olfactory, aversive and mirror tests). The expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) was then analysed by Western blotting in CNS homogenates (from a subset of the same fish) as a marker for cholinergic system activity. In both foraging and olfactory tests, fish acclimated to 28 degrees C exhibited significantly higher arousal responses than fish acclimated to lower temperatures. All specimens showed fright behaviour in the aversive test, but the latency of the escape response was significantly less in the fish at 28 degrees C. Finally, the highest mirror responsiveness was exhibited by the fish acclimated to 22 degrees C. As in the case of cholinergic neurotransmission, significantly higher ChAT levels were detected in the telencephalon, diencephalon, cerebellum and spinal cord of fish acclimated to 22 or 28 degrees C in comparison with those maintained at 18 degrees C. Lower ChAT levels were detected in the mesencephalon (optic tectum) at 22 and 28 degrees C than at 18 degrees C. These data indicate that neuronal functions are affected by water temperature. Increases or decreases in ChAT expression can be related to the functional modulation of brain and spinal cord centres involved in behavioural responses to temperature change. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the environmental temperature level influences behaviour and CNS neurochemistry in the European sea bass

Lessons learned from practical approaches to reconcile mismatches between biological population structure and stock units of marine fish

Recent advances in the application of stock identification methods have revealed inconsistencies between the spatial structure of biological populations and the definition of stock units used in assessment and management. From a fisheries management perspective, stocks are typically assumed to be discrete units with homogeneous vital rates that can be exploited independently of each other. However, the unit stock assumption is often violated leading to spatial mismatches that can bias stock assessment and impede sustainable fisheries management. The primary ecological concern is the potential for overexploitation of unique spawning components, which can lead to loss of productivity and reduced biodiversity along with destabilization of local and regional stock dynamics. Furthermore, ignoring complex population structure and stock connectivity can lead to misperception of the magnitude of fish productivity, which can translate to suboptimal utilization of the resource. We describe approaches that are currently being applied to improve the assessment and management process for marine fish in situations where complex spatial structure has led to an observed mismatch between the scale of biological populations and spatially-defined stock units. The approaches include: (i) status quo management, (ii) "weakest link" management, (iii) spatial and temporal closures, (iv) stock composition analysis, and (v) alteration of stock boundaries. We highlight case studies in the North Atlantic that illustrate each approach and synthesize the lessons learned from these real-world applications. Alignment of biological and management units requires continual monitoring through the application of stock identification methods in conjunction with responsive management to preserve biocomplexity and the natural stability and resilience of fish species.</p

The calcium looping cycle for CO2 capture from power generation, cement manufacture and hydrogen production

Calcium looping is a CO2 capture scheme using solid CaO-based sorbents to remove CO2 from flue gases, e.g., from a power plant, producing a concentrated stream of CO2 (∼95%) suitable for storage. The scheme exploits the reversible gas-solid reaction between CO2 and CaO(s) to form CaCO3(s). Calcium looping has a number of advantages compared to closer-to-market capture schemes, including: the use of circulating fluidised bed reactors-a mature technology at large scale; sorbent derived from cheap, abundant and environmentally benign limestone and dolomite precursors; and the relatively small efficiency penalty that it imposes on the power/industrial process (i.e., estimated at 6-8 percentage points, compared to 9.5-12.5 from amine-based post-combustion capture). A further advantage is the synergy with cement manufacture, which potentially allows for decarbonisation of both cement manufacture and power production. In addition, a number of advanced applications offer the potential for significant cost reductions in the production of hydrogen from fossil fuels coupled with CO2 capture. The range of applications of calcium looping are discussed here, including the progress made towards demonstrating this technology as a viable post-combustion capture technology using small-pilot scale rigs, and the early progress towards a 2MW scale demonstrator. © 2010 The Institution of Chemical Engineers